Here are five things that have been on my mind the last week!
1. I’m much more susceptible to advice if it’s written on my chocolate bar.
I think I found a new advertising strategy.
2. Everything seems more interesting when I have a paper to write.
Things like going to the bank, cleaning out my drawers, even lying on my bed and staring at the ceiling sound like something I want to do. My Sociology assignment? Not so much.
3. We got a new FroYo place.
I gladly checked it out.
4. Carpet installation is noisy.
I tried my best to stay out of the house.
Enough said.
5. There is no way I will ever make it to an 8 am exercise class.
I’ve set my alarm for 7 am twice this week with the intention of getting to a yoga class at the gym by eight. I’m beginning to accept that that will never happen. (How on earth did I make it to 8 am classes three times a week?)
Also, pretty sure just typing that jinxed me into opening shifts at the restaurant all next week. Fingers crossed that it doesn’t happen!
Since my calorie countingassignment for my Health class, I am working on sneaking more calcium into my diet. I’m not a huge fan of dairy, but I’m doing my best to find tasty ways to incorporate more into my diet!
So, for my midday snack today I had some Fage Greek yogurt, topped with Multi-Grain Cheerios, strawberries, blueberries, half a banana, and Chia seeds.
Let’s just hope I can keep this calcium-kick up – my bones are certainly going to need it forty years from now!
***
After my snack, I headed out to a campus library to work on some of my summer assignments. While I was scoping out a place to sit, I overheard a conversation between two people about which of the five senses they would choose to give up if they were forced to pick one. (A perfectly acceptable conversation to have in a college library, if you ask me).
This conversation immediately transported me back to fifth grade. My teacher subscribed to a magazine that published a question every month for elementary school students to answer, and we would practice writing responses to the question in our language arts class. I remember one month this was the chosen topic, and during the class discussion I was shocked to find out that no one was willing to give up taste.
Taste would definitely be the sense that I’d be the most willing to give up. Sure, I love eating – probably more than the average person – but it’s just food. I would still eat when I’m hungry, and I’d still get to enjoy textures (like rolling around chocolate in my mouth!), temperatures, and the smell of food (which apparently is a huge component of taste, anyway) – I just wouldn’t get enjoyment out of the actual taste.
I think smell would be the next sense I’d be most willing to give up, but I’d be way more sad to see this go! I love the “power” of smell; the olfactory bulb has immediate access to the amygdala (the part of your brain responsible for a lot of emotions) and the hippocampus (which is responsible for associative learning). This allows certain smells to immediately transport you to memories and feelings. Lavender, for example, reminds me of my yoga studio. Crazy!
Not being able to see or hear would create a crazily hectic life, drastically changing my life from how I know it. Every time I consider this, I feel blessed for how easy my life is!
But most of all, I’d never want to give up touch. I find touch beyond comforting – I think physical human contact is necessary to stay a healthy, sane person. Plus, I just like being able to feel things – hardwood floors under my feet when I’m dancing, waves carrying my body in the ocean, the smoothness of new sheets or soft hair from the shower….
What sense would you most (and least) willingly give up?
This summer, I’m taking Personal Health and Intro to Sociology through a local community college, and I will transfer the credits to my four-year university this fall. As much as I hate taking classes in the summer, it’ll be so worth it to be eight credits ahead of my classmates next year! (Hello, awesome room draw number!)
I’ve been enjoy my Health class a lot because it’s all applied health. For example, last week we talked about stress and how it affects sleep. So, we kept a sleep log and had a big discussion on how what we do (or don’t do) during the day affects our sleep, and we made plans on how to improve our sleep. We also had to try various relaxation techniques and journal about how well we thought each of them worked for us, and we made plans for what we will do to reduce and cope with future stress.
This week we’re focusing on nutrition and exercise, which, of course, I’m pretty pumped about! Unsurprisingly, a lot of our homework this week comes in the form of tracking our food, weight, exercise, etc.
We started at the Daily Food Plan where we calculated a recommendation of the number of calories and servings of each food group we should consume per day. Today, I tracked these things through the SuperTracker.
While I think tools like this are super valuable for some people, they really stress me out. I find myself questioning everything: do I round my height up to the nearest inch? What would my BMI be if I lost the few pounds I gained at school this year? If I exercise about 60 minutes per day, do I say I exercise 30-60 minutes per day or over 60 minutes per day?
On top of that, I have no idea how to track a lot of things. If I made dinner, I can tell you everything I put into the huge pot of rice and beans, but I have no idea how much of that I actually consumed (I ate a cup and a half of the mixture of three cups of beans, three cups of veggies, 1/8 cup of oil, 2 cups of rice…?).
Enter spiral of chaos.
I think the hardest part about calorie counting for me is that I feel like I should do it. It’s a way to keep a balance and know what’s really going on with your body. It helps people realize what types of food they need to eat (like how I should probably go have some yogurt ice cream right now). Some of my friends have done it with great success, losing significant amounts of weight and starting to lead a healthy lifestyle.
But none of those reasons are enough to signify that I need to start doing it. Measuring the fruit I put into my oatmeal this morning and being cautious not to snack on extra veggies while I put together my lunch made me realize that this was not the way I want to live.
I’m trying to take this assignment at face-value: I need to focus on eating more foods with calcium. I should probably start eating more before dinner so I’m not so hungry late at night. I don’t need to count calories to lead a healthy lifestyle.
What do you think?
Do you track everything you eat?
One idea that I think I may like better is simply keeping a running list of everything I eat per day – not calculating calories, but just keeping a reference of what I’m using to fuel my body. If anyone has experience with that, I’d love to hear it!
I saw that Sarah filled out this fun summer survey on her blog, and I thought I would follow suit!
1) Describe your perfect summer day.
A chance to sleep in, a yummy breakfast (with summer fruits!), and then the rest of the day spent outside (reading, swimming, walking, tanning, etc.) before a huge dinner with family/friends.
2) Favorite BBQ food?
I love barbeques, but I don’t prefer anything with BBQ sauce or brats.
I love burgers on the grill, grilled veggies, and corn on the cob!
3) Favorite article of clothing to wear in the summer?
Nike running shorts and a sports bra. Every day.
I also really like sundresses, too.
4) What color is your (favorite) swimsuit?
The top is a fabulously obnoxious neon yellow, and the bottom is black in the front and multi-colored in the back.
I cannot wait to bust that baby out!
5) Ice cream or popsicles?
Twist soft serve ice cream cone with the crunchies. You know what I’m talking about!
6) Which is better- 65-degree or 85-degree weather?
85, as long as it’s not super humid.
7) Pick one- a day spent hiking or at the beach?
Both? But I would probably pick the beach – you can go for walks along the shore!
8) Current favorite song of the summer?
I love this one every summer. So catchy!
9) Favorite summer workout?
I love going for walksor runs with friends. Swimming/boating also totally counts!
10) Baseball games or music festivals?
I really like both!
I would probably pick the music festival, though.
11) What is your favorite month of the summer?
I don’t know if I really have a favorite. Summer is summer – the days and months all kind of blend in together.
12) Favorite summer memories?
Every summer, I go to my friend’s beach house in North Carolina with her family and family friends. It’s honestly the best week of my summer every single year. We eat, we swim, we tan, we read, we play a ton of cards, we eat some more… it’s a good time had by all.
I also got to go to Chicago last summer with some of my aunts and cousins for a girl’s weekend and it was so much fun!
Answer a question yourself!: What’s one of your favorite parts about summer?
(Also, that question just reminded me of this scene in Friends here- anyone else?)
After dinner last night I felt the need to do a little something active, so I grabbed my iPod and headed out to do a loop around my neighborhood that was just shy of 5 miles.
Something about walking is so refreshing for me. I know a lot of people find this kind of zen from running, but running hasn’t been that way for me lately. Instead of freaking out about it, I’m just taking everything a bit slower. Rather than worrying about my pace, I can focus on the beauty around me, or think about the music I’m listening to. I can simply enjoy everything a bit more.
Maybe the reason I enjoy walks so much is because it’s one of the few times I allow myself to really relax and let everything sink in. And how could I not with views like this?
Breakfast
We have so much food in our fridge right now, it’s unbelievable – but I’m not complaining. The best part? Most of it is fresh fruits and veggies! I enjoyed a little bit more of summer in my bowl of cereal this morning.
I had blueberries, strawberries, Multi-grain Cheerios and Wheat Chex with skim milk. Simple and delicious!
1. Preheat waffle iron. Beat egg whites in large bowl until light and fluffy. Mix in all other ingredients and stir just until smooth.
2. Spray waffle iron with cooking spray and pour mix on to waffle iron, 1/4 cup at a time. Serve waffles warm with syrup, fruit, peanut butter, chia seeds, or whatever else you like!
All I have wanted to eat this past week is waffles, and this recipe was great for that! I simply made the mix one night and then kept it covered in a Tupperware container for the next time I used it (making sure to whisk well before making another waffle). It lasts in the fridge for an entire week!
It also works well to make multiple waffles, freeze them, and then toast them when ever you’re ready to enjoy another one!
One idea that I had while typing this up was to add flax seed to the mix – I have been topping mine with chia for extra texture, but I’m sure flax would work well in the waffles, too!
Happy breakfast-ing!
What is your favorite waffle topping?
Mine is definitely blueberries, but lately I’ve loved peanut butter and banana!
Last night, I went to my first group exercise class at my new gym.
I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect from the class going in. I knew it would be a combination of cardio and weightlifting, which sounded right up my alley, but beyond that I really had no clue.
When I arrived, the trainer immediately introduced herself and explained that the class offers a “base” workout and then gives two or three options to make the move more challenging. She also said she was sure I’d be fine in the class because I look so fit, and then proceeded to ask me what sports I play at college.
… I definitely don’t play sports at college. Immediately, I was a fan of this girl.
The workout was actually really challenging, but in a good way. The trainer was really loud and optimistic, and her energy resonated with me, making me want to push harder. We did a lot of toning exercises with weights that I’m used to, but we also had “cardio bursts” of jump roping, shuffling across the floor holding weights, jumping jacks, high-knees, etc., which kept my heart rate elevated throughout the entire class. This made the class a lot different (and a lot more exhausting!) than the workouts I typically do on my own.
I love group exercise classes because I am more likely to push myself when I’m with a group of people. In all honesty, this is probably because I don’t want to look lame when I stop to take a break when everyone else is powering through something – but hey, the motivation works!
I definitely think I’ll be going back to this class, as well as trying out a few more out at the gym, but I’m taking today off from group exercise because my glutes and hamstrings are KILLING me. Depending on how the rest of the day goes, I will either hit up an evening yoga class or run to the gym to do a little elliptical workout. I know doing something a little active, but not grueling, will definitely help with the pain!
I think I found a new advertising strategy.
I gladly checked it out.
